Califone, led by Addison's Tim Rutili, revisits debut in Chicago shows
Tim Rutili feels torn.
On the one hand, the Addison native enjoys looking back at “Roomsound,” the debut full-length album by his adventurous rock-blues-folk-electronic band, Califone, that's getting a deluxe reissue on the Dead Oceans label next month.
On the other hand, Rutili says, he would just as soon get to work on some new music.
“Yeah, it goes both ways,” Rutili said. “This record is important, though, because it's really the beginning of Califone. It set the blueprint for what the band would become.”
“Roomsound,” which originally came out in 2001, will be reissued on vinyl LP on Oct. 14. The package will include a bonus record containing five rare or unreleased songs.
Califone has featured a rotating cast of musicians behind Rutili over the years. The core lineup that recorded “Roomsound,” including percussionists Ben Massarella and Brian Deck, will perform the record in its entirety on Thursday and Friday, Sept. 22-23, at Schubas Tavern in Chicago.
“It's going to be a blast,” Rutili said. “It will be awesome playing together with those guys again. And I don't think we've ever done 'Roomsound' in full before. I think some of those songs we've never even played live before.”
Califone emerged from the ashes of the great 1990s blues-rock band Red Red Meat, a band that Rutili formed after moving from Addison to Chicago. (He studied film at Columbia College Chicago.) Rutili had been a passionate music junkie during his years at Addison Trail High School, playing in what he called lousy high school bands.
“But I was lucky to have friends who had good taste and awesome record collections, so I was exposed to a lot of music,” Rutili said. “And being in Addison, it was pretty easy to get to the city to see shows or buy some records at (famous Chicago record store) Wax Trax.”
Many critics in the '90s predicted that Red Red Meat would follow Chicago peers like Smashing Pumpkins and Urge Overkill into the national spotlight. But the band's offbeat style, which brought a grimy, bluesy sound to alternative rock, never quite crossed over, and after four albums, the band called it quits.
It didn't take long for Rutili to start releasing music under the name Califone. It was a new project, but also a continuation of the more experimental approach that Rutili was moving toward in Red Red Meat. (Most members of Red Red Meat have played in Califone at one time or another.)
“I was trying to get myself to work without thinking so much, to rely primarily on instinct,” Rutili said. “Califone helped me do that, and 'Roomsound' was where it seemed to come together.”
The impressionistic songs on “Roomsound” combine rustic acoustic-guitar picking, ringing piano and Rutili's hushed, weathered vocals. The music has a swirling, languorous, otherworldly feel, interrupted occasionally by striking blasts of percussion and electric guitar. There are also electronic accents - a feature that Califone would explore in more depth on later albums.
“It's probably my favorite record of the older stuff,” Rutili said. “I have fond memories of making it. They were simpler days. Ben, Brian and I would be in the studio, putting down the basic drums and guitar, then we'd move on. Later, the process would get more complicated.”
Rutili, who works on film projects when not writing music, hopes to record some new Califone material soon. In the meantime, he will enjoy the celebration of the band's debut.
“The record is important to me, and it seems to have struck a chord with fans, so I'm looking forward to playing all of it for them.”
Califone plays “Roomsound”
When: 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday, Sept. 22-23
Where: Schubas Tavern, 3159 N. Southport Ave., Chicago
Tickets: $20; see